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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29900070">Whirlpool Memoir</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/STLHero/pseuds/STLHero'>STLHero</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Childhood Friends, Angst, Bakugou Katsuki Swears A Lot, Female Uzumaki Naruto, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Multi, Mutual Pining, Oblivious Uzumaki Naruto, POV Alternating, Uchiha Sasuke &amp; Uzumaki Naruto Friendship, Unresolved Romantic Tension</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 18:28:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,649</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29900070</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/STLHero/pseuds/STLHero</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>She knew her fight with Sasuke in the Valley Of The End would change their lives, but she didn't realise how much it changed her life until she found herself in a world where people had Quirks instead of chakra. Not only was she now trying to figure out a way back home but she now had the added job of saving Sasuke from All For One. </p><p>She was going to save her best-friend this time even if she had to do it in the most unconventional way.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Uchiha Sasuke/Uzumaki Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>31</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>120</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>For anyone that read the earlier versions of this fanfic, this version of Whirlpool Memoir will be a lot more mature and will explore the conflict between Naruto and Sasuke.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>What’s Uzumaki doing here?</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Izuku couldn’t help but ask this question as his eyes drank in the sight of his female classmate grinning at the sight of Kamui Woods fighting a Villain. The blond-haired girl was not wearing her signature orange hoodie, instead she seemed to be wearing their school uniform in all of its glory. He could also make out a physics textbook, which wasn’t a surprise when he thought about it.</p><p> </p><p>From the moment Uzumaki waltzed into their class, she seemed to be always carrying a complicated textbook that was related to time and space. <em>She must be really smart if she can understand a really complicated topic.</em> Not even Kacchan could understand all those textbooks that their female classmate seemed to love to read.</p><p> </p><p>“Uzumaki-san, I-I didn’t know that you like watching these things.” The words tumbled out of his mouth and Izuku jumped up when his female classmate swirled her whole body towards him.</p><p> </p><p><em>S-So close.</em> His blond-haired classmate was now only a few inches away from him and right now, he could definitely smell the citrus shampoo clinging onto her hair. Bright, blue eyes stared at him with subtle confusion before lighting up with recognition. The smile on her face widened and the blond-haired teen tucked her book even more tightly between armpit.</p><p> </p><p>“Who doesn’t like seeing a good fashioned ass-kicking?” Uzumaki asked, shaking her head. “Besides that Wood Guy has a similiar K…I mean Quirk as one of the founders of my home.”</p><p> </p><p>He could only blink at the comment. <em>What was she going to say instead of Quirk?</em> There weren’t any words that came into his mind and Izuku shook his head. Did it even matter? He was actually talking to a girl without looking like an absolute moron. He was talking to his school idol like a normal person instead of being his usual, meek self around her.</p><p> </p><p>He needed to continue on with this opportunity.</p><p> </p><p>Izuku cleared his throat. “You just never really talk about heroes in school.”</p><p> </p><p>“Well heroes are cool and everything but I don’t understand why people have to be so obsessed with them,” Uzumaki explained with a nervous laugh. She darted her eyes to her book before looking back at him. “Besides, I’m more interested with the whole engineering aspect of heroics instead of the whole being a hero thing. I mean anyone can be a hero if they put time and effort into it.”</p><p> </p><p>He frowned and flickered his eyes to the pedestrians, who were still gawking and taking pictures of Kamui Wood’s feats. His classmate had always been slightly…quirky but that was probably one of the reasons that his classmate was so popular with almost everyone in the school. <em>She always just tells people not to give up on their dreams and supports them when she can.</em> It was what made his classmate admirable if you asked him.</p><p> </p><p>“Not everyone thinks like that,” he cleared his throat and fought off the urge to squeal when Kamui Wood did one of his signature moves. “You have to have an amazing, flashy Quirk to become a hero and not many people believe if you are a Quirkless person then you should never be a hero.”</p><p> </p><p>Uzumaki regarded him for the longest time and shook her head. “Well having a Quirk gives you an advantage but if that Quirkless person is smart then why can’t they become a hero? I’m pretty sure that the technology in this country should be enough to allow a person to become a hero. I’m pretty certain that if a Quirkless person becomes a hero then it would be the coolest thing in the world.”</p><p> </p><p>“Y-You think it would be cool?” Izuku asked.</p><p> </p><p>The blonde hummed and bobbed her head. “Yeah, it will be a story of the underdog overcoming all of the challenges set against them. If a hero like that exist then I’m pretty certain that I’ll support them.”</p><p> </p><p>His heart fluttered at those words and Izuku could only stare at the grinning blond-haired girl. This was the first time someone had said something like that to him. The first time in his life that he heard someone say that they would support a Quirkless person like him. He felt his throat tightening as cheers erupted in the background.</p><p> </p><p>“You really don’t think it is impossible for a Quirkless person to become hero?” Hope stirred inside of his stomach.</p><p> </p><p>Uzumaki grinned and shook her head. “Hey if an asshole like Bakugou Katsuki is going to be considered a hero to the world then I don’t see any reason why someone like you can’t become a hero! Hey, you make notes on every hero that you encountered and that shows that you really want this.”</p><p> </p><p>Tears welled up in his eyes and Izuku rubbed his eyes with a fury that could make any other person red in the eyes. If it wasn’t for the fact his whole body quivered at the idea of hugging her then he would wrap his arms around her and wail like a baby. But that wasn’t cool and while Uzumaki wouldn’t make a comment about it, the same couldn’t be said for the pedestrians.</p><p> </p><p>“U-Uzumaki, thank you!” He bowed his whole body down and blinked when the whiskered teen ruffled his head. He jerked his head up and felt his lips parting slightly at the sight of the sun-like smile on Uzumaki’s face. He could feel his heart racing against his chest when the blond-haired girl offered him a thumbs-up.</p><p> </p><p>She offered him a half-smile. “If you really wanna thank me then you better work hard, Izuku because I wanna see you accomplish your dream.”</p><p> </p><p>Neither of them said a word as they watched Mount Lady took over what should have been Kamui Wood’s reward. There was no need for any words to be spoken between them and Izuku was content to analyze the battle with the knowledge that he had one classmate that would support him with his endeavour.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>“Settle down, everyone!”</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Naruto tore her eyes away from her theoretical physics book and stared at her homeroom teacher, who strolled in without a care in the world. He did not seem one bit fazed over the fact that the majority of her classmates were illegally using their abilities, then again her teacher had never been the type to care about these things.</p><p> </p><p><em>Then again, I don’t understand why it is illegal to use Kekkei Genkei in this dimension.</em> She flipped to the next page and scanned through the lines before scribbling down some notes. This book seemed to be the best book that could be used to describe the context of how she ended up in this dimension instead of being back home.</p><p> </p><p>“I hope everyone in this room has come to terms with the fact that they are in now in their final year of Middle School,” Their teacher prattled on as he dropped the stacks of paper onto his table. He scanned the room and his eyes lingered on her before moving down to the textbook that she borrowed from the local library. “It’s time for everyone to think about their future.”</p><p> </p><p><em>Future? What type of future can I have here? What am I going to do if I can’t find a way to go back home and drag Sasuke back home?</em> She tightened her jaw and shoved the memory of warm, black eyes away from her mind. This was not the time for her to think about the asshole and how he could be suffering under the hands of Orochimaru. She could fret and worry about the idiot once she returned back home.</p><p> </p><p>As soon as she got back home, she was going to pummel him and scream at him for abandoning her before dragging him to Inochi to get his head checked.</p><p> </p><p>Automatically, her hand reached out for the floating paper above her and Naruto looked down at the piece of paper. <em>Career aspiration.</em> That was the title of the paper and the reminder of her career was enough to make her drop her shoulders. Becoming a Hero was the more obvious choice because that was a career that seemed to be somewhat similar to being a shinobi.</p><p> </p><p>But being a hero would mean she lacked the knowledge on making a machine that could correct the rip in the space-time continuum. <em>I have to get through the barriers and the little hole before closing it off.</em> She pulled her bottom lip backwards and tapped her finger against the piece of paper as chatter filled the whole classroom once again.</p><p> </p><p>“I know everyone here has an amazing Quirk!” Naruto jerked her head as her teacher continued to survey the classroom. “But everyone needs to remember that the use of Quirks inside of school is considered illegal.”</p><p> </p><p><em>Only if you get caught.</em> She picked up the piece of paper as everyone else stopped using their Quirks. It was only illegal if you get caught but if you did a good job of disguising it? Then it was fair game. Besides, it was a stupid law. How could she pay the bills, do extensive research and do her chores if she didn’t use her chakra? It made no sense if you asked her.</p><p> </p><p>“You shouldn’t place me in the same category as everyone else in this classroom!” Bakugou declared. Naruto tore her eyes away from the piece of paper and watched with rolling eyes when her classmate jumped onto the table. “You can’t compare my Quirk to their weak Quirks!”</p><p> </p><p>Naruto leaned against her chair. “You know even a weak Quirk can become powerful if someone puts the time and effort into training their own Quirk! You know Best Jeanist is one of the best heroes in the industry but his Quirk wouldn’t be amazing if he hadn’t trained in it. Just because your Quirk is flashy, doesn’t mean that you have the right to look down on everyone else in this class.”</p><p> </p><p>“You tell him, Uzumaki!” One of the boys yelled, pumping his rock-like hand up in the air. Naruto grinned and tilted her head to the side when the boy looked away from her with flushed cheeks. A couple of her female classmates let out sighs and shook their heads while a few of the boys snickered at their classmate’s reaction.</p><p> </p><p>She shook her head and flipped open her physics textbook once again. Which page had she been on? Page 100? Or was it 150? With all those books inside of her apartment, it was so difficult for her to keep track on what concepts that she had read and which ones she hadn’t read.<em> I knew I should have brought my other notebook.</em> Well it was too late for her to cry over spilled milk.</p><p> </p><p>“Of course Bakugou is aiming for Yuuei High.” One of her classmates grumbled from behind her. Naruto blinked and tore her eyes away from the physic textbook, choosing instead to focus her gaze on her neighbour. He had a pale look on his face and the blonde couldn’t blame him. There wasn’t a person in this city who didn’t know how famous that this town was.</p><p> </p><p>The blonde shook her head.</p><p> </p><p>“Their entry requirement as high as 79,” One of her classmates muttered. “There are not many people in this school who can get into the hero department. I think the only person in this school that can get into the hero department is Uzumaki! Have you seen the way she handle our seniors when he tried to harass her into going on a date?”</p><p> </p><p>Naruto wrinkled her nose and thinned her lips before picking up her textbook again. <em>It has been a couple of months and people are still talking about my reaction for getting my ass grope?</em> She scowled and flipped through the pages as her classmates debated about who was likely to get into Yuuei High School.</p><p> </p><p>She stopped reading when their teacher brought attention back to himself.</p><p> </p><p>“Looking through everyone’s files, I can see that Midoriya also wants to attend to Yuuei High.” Their teacher commented. Everyone blinked and shifted their eyes between each other before bursting out into laughter. It bounced and bounced against the walls and her ears began to ring with annoyance.</p><p> </p><p>She clenched her jaw and smacked her book against the table. The laughter died down and everyone turned their bodies towards her. Their eyes flashed with disbelief as if they couldn’t believe for one moment that  this was her reaction. But her blood was boiling with rage and for a brief moment, the scenery changed into the Academy.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“You’ll never become Hokage!”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Naruto inhaled and stared at the table.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“If you’re going to become Hokage then I’ll be the captain of your ANBU guard.”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>She shook her head and shoved the memory into the back of her mind. It had been so long ago since that fateful day in the playground, so long since she was an innocent 6-year-old girl, starving for friendship. She exhaled and stared at her gawking classmates before shifting her gaze onto the shell-shocked Izuku.</p><p> </p><p>“What the hell was that reaction, Uzumaki?” One of her female classmates asked.</p><p> </p><p>The blonde exhaled. “You’re all a bunch of assholes if you have that kind of reaction towards his dream! So what if Midoriya doesn’t have a Quirk? He can still become a hero because unlike half of the people in this school, he has enough brains to figure out how to save people. He probably has more heart than any of you.”</p><p> </p><p>“C’mon Uzumaki, you need to be realistic when it comes to Midoriya!” One of Bakugou’s Cronies barked. Naruto thinned her lips and narrowed her eyes at her classmates. “You think because he got one of the best scores in our class then that makes him good enough to become a Hero? There hasn’t been a Quirkless hero before!”</p><p> </p><p>“Anything is possible if he puts the hard work and effort into becoming a hero!” Naruto snarled. She should keep her temper in check but all she could see was the mocking eyes of her childhood classmate. “Being a hero doesn’t mean that you have to have a flashy Quirk to save people! Being a good person and a good citizen should be more important than having a flashy Quirk!”</p><p> </p><p>Her words settled in the air and every single one of her classmates slacked their jaws at her.</p><p> </p><p>She felt her lips twitched when Bakugou pushed his chair back, bumping into her table. Naruto kept her expression completely blank and watched as the blond-haired boy stalked towards her. The crackles and frizzle of his hand sliced through the air and the blonde slid her chair back. Time seemed to have slow down as that large sparking hand reached down to the table.</p><p> </p><p>She grabbed his arm and placed him against the table. From all around her, gasps sliced through the air and whispers began to float around the air. <em>So quick.</em>That was the common theme in their conversation and it wasn’t a surprise if you asked her. People here were slower than her, slower than even the slowest civilian in her village.</p><p> </p><p>She blamed technology for their lack of speed.</p><p> </p><p>“How the fuck did you—”</p><p> </p><p>“There is a lot that you don’t know about me, Bakugou.” Naruto grinned and released his arm as their teacher blinked and released his jaw from its grip. She allowed her breath to tickle his ear before turning him away from her. “You think I’m not quick enough or smart enough to know that you are going to cause my table to explode? Despite what you think, what happened that day with our senior was no fluke.”</p><p> </p><p>He narrowed his eyes at her. “What the fuck is your Quirk?”</p><p> </p><p>Everyone blinked and flickered their eyes at her. Naruto kept the smile fixed on her lips as everyone else looked at her with curiosity. Had it been a bad idea for her to show off? Most likely but she wasn’t going to have her borrowed book covered with ash. It would take her a while to clean up that mess and that was something she didn’t want to do alongside her part-time job.</p><p> </p><p>“If you can figure it out then I’ll take my next words back,” Naruto declared with a grin. He narrowed his eyes while everyone else just gawked at them. She rubbed the back of her neck and took a deep breath. “But that jerk-like attitude makes me think Izuku is going to be the one to surpass All Might and not you.”</p><p> </p><p>Vermillion eyes stilted at her. “You shouldn’t put him in the same level as me! You just caught me by surprise.”</p><p> </p><p>“Just admit that you couldn’t react on time and I didn’t even really use my Quirk.” Naruto quirked her lips into a smile and folded her arms against her chest. “And I’m putting him in the same level as you because while you have a great Quirk, you have an attitude that no hero should have! Heroes protect the weak and give hope but you do the exact opposite! How the fuck are you any different from any villain? What makes you think you can be a hero?”</p><p> </p><p>“And you think you can do any better? Don’t make me laugh!” Bakugou snarled. His whole body shivered and trembled while his red eyes just grew with rage. It was a miracle that he wasn’t ready to swing his fist against her, but then again she could have defended herself from any form of attack that he wanted to give her.</p><p> </p><p>She thinned her lips. “Wanna make a bet? I bet that if I get into Yuuei High’s Hero Department then you will say sorry to Izuku and mean it.”</p><p> </p><p>“And what will you do if you lose?” Bakugou raised his eyebrow at her.</p><p> </p><p>Naruto shrugged her shoulders and flashed him a fake smile. “Then I’ll say that you can surpass All Might and that I’m your biggest fan.”</p><p> </p><p>Her classmate stared at her for the longest time before flashing her a cocky smirk. There were no words spoken between them and there was no need for him to say anything to her. The bet was set and Bakugou was going to have the shock of his life when he realized that he lost the bet from the very beginning.</p><p> </p><p>After all, there was no one in this dimension that was her equal.</p><p> </p><p>There was only one person that could make her concern about losing this kind of bet and that person was stuck in her original dimension.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>(10 months later)</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>I really need to write this point down.</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>The sound of a pencil scribbling on a textbook filled the air and Naruto scrunched her eyebrows together. All around her, she could hear customers chatting and laughing without a care in the world. On any other day, she would have used her break time to weasel out more money but she was at an impasse when it came to her research.</p><p> </p><p>The whole collision of energies between her and Sasuke made sense but what made no sense was the amount of energy placed into their collision of attacks. Either she made a machine that could make the same amount of energy as their attack or she probably would have to fight someone who could match Chidori’s energy level.</p><p> </p><p><em>Basically I have to get into Yuuei and find an engineer that is crazy enough to do what I want.</em> She groaned and tugged her hair before quickly straightening her back at the sight of Shindou making his way towards her with a grin on his face and a cup of take-away coffee in his hand. His eyes gleamed with curiosity when he noted the open textbook on the table.</p><p> </p><p>“Someone seems to be working hard for their entrance exam,” Shindou commented. He pulled out a chair and sat down right in front of her. The older male slid the take-away cup towards her and Naruto raised an eyebrow. “Why are you giving me that expression? I can be a nice person, Uzumaki.”</p><p> </p><p>She nodded. “You can be nice but I also know you don’t give presents when you need something from me. When you gave me flowers, you asked me to help you study for your entrance exams even though you are older than me.”</p><p> </p><p>“Well your Boss likes to rave about how much you are a genius to any customer that walks through those doors,” Shindou explained. Naruto ducked her head and shook her head. She was not a genius but it was understandable how her boss had came to make that mistake. “Anyways, I thought you need a drink because you have been working so hard on your Yuuei High entrance exam.”</p><p> </p><p>Naruto sniffed the coffee and relaxed her shoulders at the chocolatey scent dancing around in the air. “Thanks for the mocha but I’m not working on my entrance exam, right now! This, right here, is my own personal research.”</p><p> </p><p>“Personal research before your exam?” Shindou shook his head and offered her a frown. “You’re that confident that you can get into Yuuei High? My juniors from my Middle School are studying like hell and you’re acting like it ain’t a big deal.”</p><p> </p><p><em>Well it is a big deal because most engineering geniuses will either go to Yuuei or that academy in I-Island.</em> She tapped her pen against the book and stared at the male for a good couple of seconds before shaking her head. As tempting as it was to inform him about the new reason for her desire to go to Yuuei, it would be stupid.</p><p> </p><p>It would be the most stupidest thing she had ever done and she had done a lot of stupid things growing up.</p><p> </p><p>“Y’know there is such thing called overstudying,” Naruto finally said. She offered him a grin and leaned against her chair. “And anyways, it isn’t like I haven’t learnt all of this stuff before, Shindou or have you forgotten how I helped you ace your entrance exams?”</p><p> </p><p>Shindou shrugged his shoulders and looked at her for the longest time. It was difficult for her to tell what was going through his mind but then again, the only boy that used to be easy for her to read had been Sasuke.<em> Well he used to be easy for me to read.</em> Cold black eyes flashed before her eyes and she shook her head.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know how you can make those topics seem so easy.” Shindou commented with a light laugh.</p><p> </p><p>She felt her lips curling up into a smile and the blonde removed the cover of her drink. “If you think I’m good at explaining then you should have seen my best-friend when he explain topics. He used to have an amazing way of making boring topics seem interesting and god did he know how to make me focus.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“If you can get at least 70% in the exam then I’ll teach you a jutsu.”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Warm black eyes flashed before her eyes and Naruto felt her throat tightening just a little bit from the memory. She picked up the drink and took a sip, not allowing her smile to falter as her friend looked at her with curious eyes. Why the hell did she have to talk about him? There was no need for her to go back to memory lane.</p><p> </p><p>Right now, she had to focus on getting back home and then focused on knocking some sense into Sasuke before screaming at him.</p><p> </p><p>“So when am I going to meet this mysterious boyfriend of yours?” Shindou quirked his lips into a smile and there was almost a teasing glint in his eyes. <em>This is payback.</em> It was almost amusing how her friend/customer believed that he could fluster her over something that wasn’t true. Nothing happened between them.</p><p> </p><p>She shook her head and leaned against her chair. “And how many times must I tell you that I don’t have a boyfriend?”</p><p> </p><p>“You constantly talk about your best friend,” Shindou observed. There was almost a bitter smile on his lips but it was gone in an instant and she had to wonder if it had been her imagination. The male shook his head. “That sends a message to a guy that you probably have feelings for this best friend and that you’re emotionally unavailable to them.”</p><p> </p><p>Naruto blinked and scrunched her eyebrows together. “But we didn’t date or anything like that! I mean we had one kiss—”</p><p> </p><p>“—So you guys did kiss,” Shindou said flatly. “And that doesn’t scream that the two of you had something going on?”</p><p> </p><p>Her cheeks burned at the accusation and the blonde smacked her cheeks together. <em>It had been the heat of the moment.</em> She sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes as her fingers tingled from the phantom sensation of Sasuke’s cold cheeks. At the time, she thought Sasuke had been dead and when Sakura-chan told her that he was alive, well it was natural for her to kiss him.</p><p> </p><p>“Can’t a girl and a guy kiss once and still be friends?” She cleared her throat and took a hurried sip of her coffee as her male-friend gazed at her with knowing eyes. Naruto shrugged her shoulders and tapped her finger against the table. “Besides, it had been a heat of the moment kind of thing. That doesn’t mean anything.”</p><p> </p><p>Shindou looked at her. “Who initiated it?”</p><p> </p><p>“Doesn’t matter,” Naruto puffed her cheeks. “And you shouldn’t think that because we kissed twice—”</p><p> </p><p>“—Twice!” He laughed. “I thought you said that you guys only kissed once!”</p><p> </p><p>She scowled. “The first time was an accident!”</p><p> </p><p>Her friend snickered and looked absolutely unconvinced at the idea that her very first kiss had been an accident.<em> The worst thing is that I can’t explain how it happened without him jumping to conclusion.</em> She balled her hands into a fist and shook her head. There was absolutely no need for her to explain herself to her friend.</p><p> </p><p>“What you and me have is friendship but what you and your best-friend is a whole bucketload of emotions,” Shindou observed. He picked up his coffee and took a sip of his own drink before looking at her with thoughtful eyes. “Even if you guys never had those romantic actions, it is clear with any person with a brain that you have feelings for him.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>‘They were bullying Naruto first but you would rather believe that unmotivated idiot over her?’</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Furious black eyes played before her eyes and just like always, she felt her heart fluttered and the whiskered teen shook her head. Stupid. She was being completely stupid for remembering those wonderful days between them. <em>I need to focus on the present.</em> But her heart wailed when those black eyes turned slightly cold.</p><p> </p><p>She hated this aspect of herself.</p><p> </p><p>“Best friends can’t have feelings for each other.” Naruto shook her head and took a sip of her drink as her heart raced against her chest. “And I told you that I have a friend who was in love with him. Even <em>if I did</em> have feelings for him, I wasn’t going to destroy my friendship with my friend because I have feelings for Sasuke.”</p><p> </p><p><em>Besides, I think I would know if I have feelings for him and he had feelings for me.</em> She stared down at the foam and closed her eyes. It didn’t matter anyways. She was stuck here with limited, potential ways of going back home while her best friend was in their dimension with Orochimaru. She closed her eyes and bit her lips.</p><p> </p><p>Did he still exist? Or had Orochimaru already taken over his body?</p><p> </p><p>“Shouldn’t your best-friend have a choice in the matter?” Shindou asked. “It’s his love life as well.”</p><p> </p><p><em>You think if Sasuke likes me, I wouldn’t know? He would have been at least obvious about it.</em> She took a deep breath and shoved away the bitterness that threatened to consume her. If Sasuke liked her then he wouldn’t spend every single minute trying to push her away from him. He would have allowed her to know what Orochimaru had done to him.</p><p> </p><p>If he truly liked her then…</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>He wouldn’t have abandoned her without even a single goodbye.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>“Why are we even talking about my non-existent love life?” Naruto scowled and shook her head. “What about you? You’re the one with a crush on your classmate! Have you actually gotten the courage to ask her out? Or were you doing the whole Tsundere thing with her?”</p><p> </p><p>Shindou shrugged.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m still working on it.”</p><p> </p><p>Naruto stared at him for a good five seconds before flinging her arms up in the air. “Working on it? How many times have I told you that there is no strategy in asking a girl out! You just tell her that you wanna go out on a date with her and that you really like her! That’s it!”</p><p> </p><p>Her friend looked at her with unimpressed eyes and the blonde puffed her cheeks. Why must he look at her like that? Sure, she might not have dating experience but she was a girl and she knew how uncomplicated the whole thing could be. <em>But leave it to Shindou to treat it like it is some complicated strategy.</em> Boys were complete idiots.</p><p> </p><p>“Why must I be the one to ask her out?” He asked with a scowl. “In this day and age, a girl can do the same thing! If you’re right about Nakagame-san having feelings for me then why hasn’t she asked me out? It’s a lot of pressure for a guy.”</p><p> </p><p><em>You’ve got to be kidding me!</em> She held back the urge to smack her forehead against the table and stared at the older boy with twitching eyebrows. This kind of behavior was completely and absolutely pathetic. Even Sakura and Ino had more guts then him and Naruto knew damn well that Sasuke had never liked them back.</p><p> </p><p>“Well some girls are afraid of rejection and considering the fact that your strategy had been to act hot and cold with her, I wonder why your crush doesn’t ask you out!” The male flinched and looked put-off while Naruto shook her head at him. “Look either you ask her out or you make it obvious to her that you like her back! Now pick one of those options.”</p><p> </p><p>Shindou groaned.</p><p><br/>“Let us just go back to talking about your exam!”</p><p> </p><p>She puffed her cheeks.</p><p> </p><p>“Fine but you know that you have to pick one of those options or I’ll go to your high school and blast your feelings out into the public.”</p><p> </p><p>Her friend smacked his head against the table and narrowed his eyes at her. She flashed him a warm smile and waited for the male to deny her words. He only let out a sigh and lifted his head from the table before throwing her a feeble glare.</p><p> </p><p>“The sad thing is that I know you will actually go through with that option.”</p><p> </p><p>She laughed and shook her head.</p><hr/><p>(<em>Next Day)</em></p><p>
  <em>Well I know that they say that U.A is big but they never told me that it didn’t feel like a school.</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>Naruto slid her physics book into her bag and gawked at the main building that stood right in front of her. Throughout her three years of living in this dimension, she had came to realize and even appreciate the fact that there were a lot of pretty things in this dimension but she had never seen a building that looked as futuristic as the one right in front of her.</p><p> </p><p><em>When I become Hokage, I’m definitely going to make the Academy look as good as this.</em> She bobbed her head and slid her hands into her pocket before darting her eyes to the various people filtering into the building. Just like her, all of them seemed to be wearing their uniforms and seemed to be eager to get into the exam.</p><p> </p><p>“Naruto!”</p><p> </p><p>The blonde blinked and clicked her heels together before turning her whole body in the direction of the high-pitch voice. Izuku waved his hand at her as a large smile broke out of his face. He charged right towards her with an excitement that almost reminded her of a puppy, except her classmate was not a cute, little puppy.</p><p> </p><p>He was an adorable little rabbit that needed to be protected from harm.</p><p>“I see that you made it, Izuku!” Naruto grinned and then blinked when her classmate flushed a light shade of pink. Was her classmate sick? It seemed like it. <em>But I don’t think his Mom is the type to make him come here when he is sick.</em> There could be another reason for her classmate looking as pink as Hinata-chan.</p><p> </p><p>The dark green-haired boy beamed and bobbed his head before averting his gaze away from her. Did she do something weird? Nope. There wasn’t enough time for her to do her usual weird shit. She tapped her finger against her chin and poked her tongue against her cheek as she waited for her classmate to finally say something to her.</p><p><br/>“Do you feel nervous about the exam?” Her classmate still did not look her in the eye.</p><p> </p><p>Naruto hummed and stared at the blue sky. <em>You’ll be fine, Idiot! I helped you study and if you fail this time then either the teachers are being biased idiots again or you panicked! So don’t panic like an idiot.</em> Why did that memory have to come to her mind? There was no chance of her being discriminated in these exams.</p><p> </p><p>But it did feel weird not to have <em>his</em> subtle support with her.</p><p> </p><p>“If you mean if I’m nervous about the written exam then maybe! English isn’t my best subject.” She laughed and shook her head as her classmate offered her a reassuring smile. Naruto smiled just a little bit wider. “But if you wanna know about my feelings for the practical part then it will be a piece of cake for me.”</p><p> </p><p>Several of her potential future classmates shot looks of irritation at her while Izuku lowered his shoulder as if he hadn’t been hoping that would have been her answer. <em>Right, I forget that he doesn’t know me and my habit of being overconfident.</em> Sasuke used to give her a light whack on the head before telling her that she shouldn’t have a big ego.</p><p> </p><p>It was ironic when she considered the fact that Sasuke had always been the one with the ego.</p><p> </p><p>“Y-You must be really confident about your Quirk.”</p><p> </p><p><em>Considering the fact that chakra lets me do anything, of course I’m confident.</em> She clasped her hands behind her head and stared at her classmate, who kept shuffling back and forth in his spot. There was absolutely no chance in hell that she was going to use that as the explanation for her confidence and it wasn’t like she could say that she was a kunoichi.</p><p> </p><p>Dear god if those movies were true then they would experiment on her and that was the last thing she wanted from them.</p><p> </p><p>“Nah, I’m just confident that I don’t want to give our sweet, loving classmate another reason to have a big head.” Naruto grinned and darted her eyes to the other students before leaning closer to Izuku. “I’m afraid if I don’t win this bet then Bakugou is going to have a head bigger than this school.”</p><p> </p><p>Izuku stared at her for the longest time before coughing at her words. She could see a smile forming on the boy’s face and that meant her mission had been accomplished. <em>Well now I know I made him relax, now I have to calm him down even more.</em> It would be horrible if the reason her classmate failed was because he had been too nervous for the exam.</p><p> </p><p>“Kacchan will rub it in your face if you lose your bet.” Izuku shook his head and released his hands from his stomach before darting his eyes to the other students. Most of them seemed to be sneaking glances at them, with a couple of boys taking longer in their steps. <em>It feels like I’m in a zoo.</em> She wrinkled her nose and shook her head.</p><p> </p><p>This was not the time for her to be self-conscious over the fact that they were getting stares from a bunch of strangers.</p><p> </p><p>“So I heard from a friend that heroes actually do teach in this school,” Naruto began to make her way with Izuku and she quirked her lips into a smile when she saw the excited gleam in his eyes. “Are they really the best heroes in the business? And how does being a hero and a teacher work? Do they need to get special licenses to teach?”</p><p> </p><p>Izuku bobbed his head. “Well even if we still graduate, we can still go to college and…”</p><p> </p><p>The words became muffled against her ears and she stopped in her tracks when a familiar sensation washed over her. It was chakra but it was cold as if someone stuffed the joy out of that chakra. But why could she sense chakra? She took a deep breath and felt her throat tightening up when the sensation became clearer to her.</p><p> </p><p>It felt like a fire of anger but there was something distinct about this chakra. It was familiar. <em>Home.</em> Yes, it felt like home and there was only one person in both dimensions that would give her that thought. Only <em>he</em> could bring that sensation out of her and Naruto allowed her breathing to quicken as hope stirred inside of her stomach.</p><p> </p><p>She turned her head around and scanned the walkway, only to slump her shoulders when she caught no sign of her childhood friend.<em> God, I must be really stupid and I must really miss him if I thought he was here.</em> Her throat tightened and the whiskered teen shook her head. Her stupid head was playing tricks on her again.</p><p> </p><p>It was making her long for a boy that kept pushing her away when all she wanted from him was for him to open up to her.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>I care about you and I don’t want to lose you too.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>She could never say the words that she had always meant to say to Sasuke on that fateful day.</p><p> </p><p>“Naruto, are you okay?”</p><p> </p><p>The whiskered teen blinked and flashed the male a smile before bobbing her head at him. <em>I should just focus on the exam and that is it.</em> There was no need for her to wallop up in sadness and sob over her best friend. That part of her life was gone. She was done with it and one day she was going to look her friend in the eye and tell him that she didn’t want to lose him.</p><p> </p><p>“Tell me everything that you know about this place.”</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>I was just imagining things because I feel <strong>lonely</strong> without him.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>(Not once did Naruto notice that there was a pair of black eyes watching her).</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>This chapter would have been longer but I decided that the whole exam portion and even the whole explanation of the exam rules will be either skipped over or mentioned in the next chapter, so you have been warned. Can anyone guess the reason why Sasuke was in Yuuei High? The answer will be revealed in the upcoming chapters.</p><p>Please do tell me of your thoughts about this version of Whirlpool Memoir and do leave a kudo if you enjoyed this story.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>(Nearly 10 years ago)</em>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <em>She looks like a little fairy.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>That was the only thought Sasuke had when his eyes caught sight of a blond-haired girl standing right in front of him. The whole yard was quiet as the Third Hokage prattled on about the expectations that he had on them. Most of the other kids in the assembly line looked normal, nothing remarkable and did not stand out in the crowd of eager first year students.</p><p> </p><p>What stood out about that blond-haired girl wasn’t her pretty golden hair that was barely kept together or even the tiny smudges of dirt that clung to her skin. It was the fact that she was one of the only students in this yard, who didn’t seem to have her parents standing behind her. Why was she alone? And what was her name? Was she even real? Because she looked exactly like one of the woodland creatures that his mother loved to tell him stories about.</p><p> </p><p><em>“Who are you looking at, Sasuke-kun?”</em> Sasuke blinked and looked up at his mother. There was a glint of curiosity in his mother’s eyes as she shifted her gaze from the talking Hokage to him.</p><p> </p><p>Sasuke looked down at his feet and darted his eyes to the fidgeting girl standing right in front of him, before looking back to his parents and brother. His older brother didn’t seem to be paying much attention to him while his father had now reverted his gaze towards him. There was a slight tickle of concern and curiosity in his father’s eyes as if he couldn’t understand why he wasn’t paying attention to the speech.</p><p> </p><p>He glanced at the golden-haired girl and cleared his throat.<em> “That girl in front of me doesn’t have anyone standing behind her.”</em></p><p> </p><p>His parents blinked and exchanged glances before directing their attention to the blond-haired girl standing right in front of him. His father had a blank look but Sasuke didn’t miss the way that his father glanced at his mother with concern. A frown began to play on his lips and the young boy gazed at his mother.</p><p> </p><p>The black-haired woman stared at the little girl with sad eyes before directing her eyes to the Third Hokage. <em>“No, she wouldn’t have any parents standing by her side. The poor girl lost her parents in the Kyuubi attack.”</em></p><p> </p><p>There was a strange emotion in his mother’s voice and Sasuke never missed the way that his mother glared at the Third Hokage. He didn’t understand why his mother would look at their leader in that way but he could see his father thinning his lips and nudging his mother as if he was trying to warn her about something.</p><p> </p><p>His mother regained her composure and slipped on a smile.</p><p> </p><p><em>“Do you know her?”</em> He whispered.</p><p> </p><p>Mikoto bobbed her head and looked at the blond-haired girl with a sad smile. <em>“That little girl is the daughter of my best-friend.”</em></p><p>
  
</p><p><em>Then why haven’t you introduce me to her?</em> The question was on the tip of his tongue but there was something about his mother’s eyes that told him that he shouldn’t ask her that question. Something told him that if he asked this question then his mother was going to look even more sad. But it was weird because he didn’t know his mother had friends outside of the clan.</p><p> </p><p>It would be nice if he could have a friend in his class but what if that girl saw him as an Uchiha? Some of the kids in the playground didn’t really play with him because of his background. <em>Maybe she might be different.</em> He didn’t know why that thought came to his mind but there was something about that little girl that drew his attention.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>(Even when he looks back throughout their interactions, Sasuke would admit that Naruto had always been mesmerizing even when she threw a temper tantrum or had dirt stuck on her skin.)</em>
</p><p> </p><p>His mother cleared her throat and probed him with a gentleness that only a mother could have. There was a teasing smile and almost a knowing look in his mother’s eyes. <em>“Does Sasuke-kun have a little crush on her? Is that why you keep looking at her? Because there are a few other kids in the same position as her.”</em></p><p> </p><p>Sasuke frowned and knitted his eyebrows before darting his eyes around the yard. There were other kids in the yard who didn’t have parents or siblings standing behind them but nothing really stood out about them. They looked almost…ordinary. Unlike the girl in front of him, those kids didn’t seem to fidget and they looked almost bored as if they didn’t really want to be here.</p><p> </p><p><em>“Girls are icky!”</em> He declared with a scowl. His mother giggled and raised an eyebrow as if she knew that wasn’t his original thought when it came to that fairy-like girl standing right in front of him. His father, on the other hand, stared at his mother like he knew what was going through her mind. <em> “But she looks like one of the fairies from your bedtime stories.”</em></p><p> </p><p>His mother coughed and Sasuke looked away when he felt his cheeks heating up with that confession. It was the truth because out of all the girls standing alongside him, only that little girl looked like she could be a fairy or one of those woodland creatures from one of his mother’s stories. There was just something about her that always drew his attention; something pulling him to interact with her.</p><p> </p><p><em>“Seems like your hope came true.”</em> His father muttered under his breath. Sasuke furrowed his eyebrows and blinked when his mother tightened her smile and dug her heel on his father’s foot. The older male winced and the black-haired boy could only wonder why his gentle, non-violent mother would have that kind of reaction to his father’s words.</p><p> </p><p>His brother only snorted as if he knew what was happening between their bickering parents.</p><p> </p><p>Mikoto shook her head and offered him a hopeful smile.<em> “Sasuke-kun, can you do me a favor?”</em></p><p>
  
</p><p><em>“A favor?”</em> He frowned and scrunched his eyebrows together as his mother fixed her gaze on the fidgeting girl right in front of them. There was almost a determined, calculated glint in his mother’s eyes as if she was planning something and for the first time in his short life, he couldn’t recognize the gentle mother that raised him.</p><p> </p><p>She looked like a person with a mission.</p><p> </p><p><em>“Can you become friends with her?”</em> His mother requested with a smile. Sasuke blinked and the black-haired woman offered him a tiny smile as the Hokage continued to babble in the background.<em> “It will make me happy if you can become friends with her, Sasuke.”</em></p><p> </p><p>Sasuke stared at his mother for a good five seconds and then glanced at his father, who only offered him a subtle nod as if encouraging him to go with his mother’s wishes. <em>I guess it won’t be bad if my first friend in the Academy is a girl.</em> He bobbed his head and felt his heart flutter with happiness when he saw the joy in his mother’s eyes.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>(It didn’t take him long to become friends with Naruto and it didn’t take him long to realize that out of everyone in their class, only Naruto would see him as Sasuke. That only his classmate acknowledged him as a person and not some kind of genius that needed to be worshipped).</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><hr/><p>
  <em>(Now)</em>
</p><p>
  <em>“Candidate 7896 was impressive throughout the practical exam.”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Aizawa folded his arms against his chest and leaned against  his chair as Nedzu replayed the clips from the entrance exam for them. All of the scores for the practical exam had been calculated but it was a good idea for them to recalculate the scores in case that they missed something or if they disagreed about the rescue mark score.</p><p> </p><p>“That girl was definitely out of this world,” Midnight commented with a shudder. “Just seeing that clip again gives me goosebumps and not just the fun kind if you know what I mean.”</p><p> </p><p>The black-haired man bobbed his head and watched as Nedzu replayed the tape to show how the blond-haired girl cleared through the robots with a speed that seemed to be faster than the speed of light. No matter how many times  the Principal replayed the clip, he still could not figure out the exact way that the girl pummeled those machines.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know if that kid has a Quirk that allows her to play trick on us or if that kid is just naturally gifted,” Vlad-King observed. The man leaned forward in his seat and twirled his pen around as his eyes drank in the sight of the girl pulling a couple of frozen students away from the machine. “She couldn’t have possibly known about the hidden portion of the exam.”</p><p> </p><p>All Might shook his head. “It seems like most of her reactions are instinct.”</p><p> </p><p><em>But how can she have an instinct that tells her to rescue as many people as she can?</em> Aizawa rubbed his jaw and allowed himself to feel his slight stubble before glancing at his fellow teachers. Hizashi had been quiet throughout the whole exchanged and video-watching, only rubbing the back of his neck and drinking water as the other teachers argued about the rescue-point system.</p><p> </p><p>“Instinct doesn’t explain how she can score so highly in both portions of the practical exam,” Vlad-King stated with a frown. He scrunched his eyebrows together while the other teachers exchanged glances. “Students either leaned on rescue or combat but that girl scored roughly the same amount of marks for both portion of the exam.”</p><p> </p><p>Nedzu cleared his throat and jumped onto the table. The mouse placed his paws behind his back and focused his eyes on them as a calculating glint flashed before his eyes. “That is most likely because Candidate 7896 has the most experienced out of all of the students that applied for this course.”</p><p> </p><p>“She is only 15,” All Might pointed out. “Where would she even get this experience?”</p><p> </p><p>Aizawa nodded and stared at the mouse.<em> I can see why he would think she has experience but is there anyone foolish enough to allow a 15-year-old student to do hero work? I doubt I have even seen a vigilante with her description.</em> He thinned his lips and held his breath as he waited for the mouse to give his usual long-winded explanation on his observations.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t know where this particular candidate got her experience but it is clear from her movement that she has done this simulation before,” Nedzu inspected the screen before darting his eyes at the teachers gathered around him. “That reaction time can only be done by someone who has experience in combat.”</p><p> </p><p>The black-haired man nodded and flipped through the file that Nedzu had given them to read. <em>Uzumaki Naruto.</em> Her middle-school scores were good, even extraordinary if he wanted to compliment her but there was something about the girl that made his stomach curled with unease. Something about those blue eyes that made him want to squirm.</p><p> </p><p>“Her middle school scores are above-average and meets the requirement but there is nothing about her file that can explain her talent,” Vlad-King dropped the file onto the table and curled his lips into a tiny scowl. “I want to argue that this level of talent can be due to her Quirk as well but it isn’t anything remarkable like the other students. There are just as many students with super-strength and speed but somehow she is…<em>just</em> different.”</p><p> </p><p>The words hovered in the air and all of the teachers exchanged glances as Nedzu paused the video. The white-furred mouse looked at the screen with thoughtful eyes as if he was trying to figure out how a 15-year-old girl could be so experienced with such a dangerous job. Something that could potentially convinced Vlad-King that they were dealing with a student with experienced.</p><p> </p><p>Aizawa did not know how his fellow teacher couldn’t accept the fact that there was a potential for the girl to be experienced.</p><p> </p><p>“You have to acknowledge the fact that she is the most experienced one,” Nedzu argued. He paced back and forth on the table as chatter began to float around the meeting room. “Out of all the students on the exam site, she seems to be the one that was the most comfortable on the battlefield. Not at one point did she freeze up and not once did she show that same bloodthirsty excitement that the other students had.”</p><p> </p><p>Aizawa regarded the mouse and stared at the blond-haired girl on the screen. Nothing about the girl screamed that she had the same arrogant confidence like the other students. The confidence of this potential student told him that this child believed she could pass the exam because she knew her skills were enough to pass the exam.</p><p> </p><p>It was like she knew that they would be stupid to reject her once they saw just how good she was in a battle simulation.</p><p> </p><p>“We don’t have any choice but to accept her even if her written scores are terrible.” The other teachers turned away from him and the man gazed at Nedzu with thinned lips. He needed the man confirm his suspicions because there was very little doubt in his mind of what would be the implication of the school if they didn’t enroll this student.</p><p> </p><p>“We’re the Number One Hero School,” Nedzu stated. The mouse hopped back onto his seat and stared at the teachers, who still had their eyes fixated on the barely sweating blond-haired girl. “If we don’t take this girl in then we will look like fools because I doubt that there is a person in this school, who can outdo her scores.”</p><p> </p><p>Aizawa bobbed his head and flickered his eyes to the student, who had the second highest score in the  practical exam. Unlike the girl, that boy had only scored highly when it came to combat but had no score when it came to rescue points. He rubbed his jaw and flickered his eyes to the candidate, who only reached 7<sup>th</sup> place due to scoring highly on the rescue point.</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>That girl is the perfect blend but there is something about that girl that makes me hesitant about her.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>He exhaled and shook his head.</p><p> </p><p>“She has potential but her potential can only take so far.”</p><p> </p><p>Only time would tell him if this candidate would continue to succeed their expectations.</p><hr/><p>
  <em>“Did something happen today?”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Naruto looked away from the coffee machine and stared at the brown-haired man leaning against the wall. Her boss had a frown playing on his lips as he flickered his eyes from the cups of coffee on the tray before looking back at her. In the background, the whiskered teen could hear their lively chatter and their laughter.</p><p> </p><p>She exhaled and shook her head. “You want to know if I’m confident about getting in or not?”</p><p>Her boss looked almost faintly amused that she had figured out the reason that he was taking an interest in her life. <em>I thought the exam would be more difficult but it really wasn’t anything interesting.</em> She cracked her knuckles and looked to the customers sitting on the various tables. The blonde paused as a pulsing sensation washed over her.</p><p> </p><p>Her heart stopped and the whiskered teen looked around the café to find the source of that sensation. It was a subtle sensation as if someone was looming over the café but not trying to come in. <em>It feels like <strong>him</strong>.</em> Her heart raced and the whiskered teen shook her head. There was no way that Sasuke would be in this dimension.</p><p> </p><p>He would have shown himself to her by now.</p><p> </p><p>“The practical exam was a piece of cake,” Naruto cleared her throat and looked down at the coffee before flashing a grin to her boss. “And the written portion was easy enough, well except for English but I’m sure that my other scores could make up for it.”</p><p> </p><p>The man nodded but did not look one bit convinced by her words. His hazel eyes held a subtle glint of concern as the chatter in the background grew even louder. She rubbed the back of her neck and waited with a baited breath for the man to say something to her. What was going through his mind? And why didn’t he believe her? The exam had been a piece of cake for her.</p><p> </p><p>After a couple of minutes, her boss cleared his throat. “Then why do you feel sad and disappointed?”</p><p> </p><p>Naruto forced the smile on her lips to widen and her smile did not falter when the man offered her a knowing look. He picked up her tray of coffee and slid it onto the table before grabbing her wrist. He pulled her into the darker corners of the room and her stomach rolled with uncertainty. Her boss only did this whenever he wanted to have a personal conversation with her or any of his workers.</p><p> </p><p>“Boss, I really don’t feel sad.” She pointed to her stretched cheeks and cleared her throat. “I know I’m going to get into Yuuei High so why would I feel sad? This isn’t the face of a sad person.”</p><p> </p><p>The man gazed at her for the longest time and shook his head. “Did you forget that my Quirk allows me to see emotions? You are looking more blue than ever alongside some shades of grey and that is the sign of someone with a lot of sadness.”</p><p> </p><p>The blonde gazed at her boss for the longest time before looking to the window. <em>My name is Uchiha Sasuke!</em> Warm black eyes and a confident smile flashed before her eyes. For a brief moment, the whiskered teen felt her chest tightening like someone squeezed her heart. The blonde rubbed the back of her neck and released a shaky breath.</p><p> </p><p>She couldn’t tell her boss about what she felt but there was something that she wanted to get off of her chest.</p><p> </p><p>“I thought I saw my best-friend in Yuuei High but it turns out that I didn’t see him,” Naruto lied. She rubbed her knuckles and took a deep breath as her heart flipped just a little bit. “I think that it might have been my imagination.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“Get some sleep, Naruto.”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Sasuke’s groggy voice echoed in her ears and Naruto looked out to the window once again. Everything reminded her of him. Even her own apartment reminded her of her best-friend. Until she came to this dimension, she barely slept in her bed without Sasuke. The only times that her male best-friend and her weren’t in the same bed was either when they argued or their missions.</p><p> </p><p>“Is that best-friend of yours the reason that things didn’t work out between you and Shindou?” Naruto jerked her head and her boss looked at her with concern and curious eyes. All of the chatter in the café seemed to be muffled as the man looked at her with concern eyes. He didn’t say anything but there was a look of expectation in his eyes.</p><p> </p><p>She rubbed the back of her neck and thinned her lips. “Shindou and me are only friends and  Shindou likes a girl from his high-school.”</p><p> </p><p>“I know this isn’t my business but Shindou spent a whole year trying to ask you out before he gave up on you.” Naruto blinked and jerked her head as her boss tilted his head to the side. “But you always talk about your best-friend and that sent that boy the message that you will never look his way.”</p><p> </p><p>“But why would he even want to date me?” Naruto scrunched her eyebrows together and rubbed her knuckles as her boss looked at her with concern eyes as if he didn’t understand why would she have doubts. <em>I mean he would make it obvious that he likes me, wouldn’t he?</em> She shook her head and let out another sigh.</p><p> </p><p>Her boss shuffled back and forth before answering. “I’m pretty certain because he enjoys spending time with you and likes your smile. It is pretty natural for a guy to like you and most of the boys come in because they can’t get enough of your smiles.”</p><p> </p><p>The blonde bobbed her head as her boss offered her a look of discomfort before looking out to the smiling customers. There was an air of comfort as the man stared at her for the longest time. There was a look of understanding in his eyes as if he had some idea of why she couldn’t comprehend the idea of boys liking her.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“How are you going to get a boy to like you if you don’t take care of your hair, Naruto? Boys don’t like girls who are too loud!”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Naruto shook her head and cleared her throat. “The next time a guy asks me out then I’ll go on a date with him.”</p><p> </p><p>“Without talking about your best-friend?” Her boss requested. The whiskered teen blinked and scrunched her eyebrows together. <em>You want me to go on a date and not talk about Sasuke? You’re asking for the impossible.</em> It had always been the two of them. Every single happy memory that she had was either of the black-haired boy or Hinata-chan.</p><p> </p><p>She took a deep breath. “C’mon, I can’t go on a date and not talk about Sasuke! And there is nothing wrong about me talking about Sasuke! They have nothing to worry about when it comes to me and Sasuke.”</p><p> </p><p>The man let out a sigh and looked to the smiling couples that sat in the darkest corner of the café.</p><p> </p><p>“Your words don’t match your eyes, Naruto.” Her boss tapped his finger against the wall and offered her a scrutinizing look. “And I don’t know about why you won’t tell your best-friend about your feelings but you need to resolve things between the both of you before you go out on any dates. You need to start living your life, kiddo and you can’t live it if you carry a torch for him.”</p><p> </p><p>She stared at him for the longest time before staring down at her hands. <em>He isn’t the reason that I can’t live my life. I don’t belong in this dimension and I can’t be happy when I know Sasuke is still suffering.</em> Her throat tightened and the whiskered teen shook her head. There was no way that she could say those words to her boss.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not carrying a torch for him.”</p><p> </p><p>Her boss chuckled and shook his head.</p><p><br/>“Your words almost fooled me, Naruto but your emotions tell me a whole different story.”</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>What the hell does that mean?</em>
</p><p> </p><p>Her emotions matched her words.</p><hr/><p>“<em>Did you analyze the building, Hellbringer?”</em></p><p> </p><p>Sasuke offered a grunt and slid the school map to Shigaraki before making his way behind the counter. He could see Kurogiri eyeing him with almost curious eyes. <em>His job is to mother that big baby, not me.</em> He darted his eyes to the bluish grey-haired man, who clutched the stolen map like it was the most precious thing in the world.</p><p> </p><p>Considering how much the man loved to rant about his hatred for heroes and All Might, it wouldn’t be a stretch to think that the man did see the piece of document as a gift sent from heaven.</p><p> </p><p>“You seem tense, Sasuke-kun.” Kurogiri stated. Sasuke did not bother to turn around to face the misty-like man and instead chose to pull open the fridge door, bringing out the one drink that these people would allow him to drink. He popped open the soda can and took a sip before twisting his body around to face the two older males.</p><p> </p><p>Kurogiri eyed him with veiled concern while Shigaraki regarded him with curious but eager eyes. <em>He is excited to know that I’m dropping my guard.</em> His lips almost twitched into a scowl and the black-haired teen offered them a blank look. Nothing in the world was going to let him lower his guard around these people.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“So I heard from a friend that heroes actually do teach in this school.”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>The loud voice of Naruto echoed in his ear and Sasuke paused as Naruto’s smile flashed before his eyes. It wasn’t a relief to know his childhood friend was here. <em>This is all that idiot’s fault that we are in this mess.</em> He tightened his grip on the soda can and ignored the tightening sensation as the girl’s fake smile flashed before his eyes again.</p><p> </p><p>She wouldn’t be miserable if she just listened to his request and stick out of his business.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m fine.” He gulped down his sugary drink and placed it on the counter. Kurogiri eyed the drink and then offered him an unimpressed look as if he wasn’t fooled by his actions while Shigaraki looked even more gleeful. Bastard. That bastard enjoyed seeing him riled up, always had from the moment that All For One declared that he would help them with their goal in exchanged with going back home.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“Play with me, Sasuke!”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>His body froze as childish blue eyes came into his mind again. For a brief moment, the seedy bar faded and was replaced with the green fields of Konoha. He could see Naruto offering him a hopeful smile as she dragged him away from the training field with the stupid desire to play. His chest tightened even more when he recalled the way her hair danced alongside the breeze.</p><p> </p><p>But it wasn’t long before the image faded away to reveal the curious eyes of his temporary partners.</p><p> </p><p>“You seem shaken for someone that was fine,” Shigaraki commented with an excited tone. His red eyes seemed to be starving to find any way to poke holes on his comment and Sasuke could practically see the grown-man bouncing in his seat. <em>He is going to find any weakness that I have and exploit it.</em> It wouldn’t be a big deal but Naruto was here.</p><p> </p><p>She couldn’t be dragged into this mess once again.</p><p> </p><p>“I got your information and I hacked into the database like you requested,” he kept his tone blank. “And confirmed that All Might will be teaching in Yuuei High, but his schedule and plans hadn’t been confirmed.”</p><p> </p><p>Shigaraki bobbed his head and scratched his neck. “We just need to wait for school to start and then we will be able to kill the Number One Hero.”</p><p>Sasuke nodded and stared at the man for the longest time. He felt his stomach lurching with displeasure as Naruto’s smiling face  flashed before his eyes. <em>I don’t care about her. I lost any right to care about that idiot when I used the Chidori on her.</em> His fingers twitched as teary blue eyes flashed against his eyes once again.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“All everyone talks about is how sad that you are to lose your parents but no one says anything to your face! None of the boys seem to care that you lost everything and most of those girls keep talking about is how they want to fix your damage heart! It doesn’t feel like anyone sees that you are going through shit! I hate this!”</em>
</p><p> </p><p>He tightened his jaw and shoved the memory back into his mind.</p><p> </p><p>“You aren’t going to involve the students.” He kept his expression blank and picked up his drink as Shigaraki looked at him with suspicious eyes. Kurogiri regarded him like he didn’t know what to think of him anymore. Sasuke only pressed his lips into a very thin line and rubbed the cold hard metal surface of his drink as he waited for one of those villains to make a comment.</p><p> </p><p>Shigaraki looked at him with suspicious eyes. “Did Hellbringer suddenly grow a heart? Since when did <em>you</em> care about students? You killed so many people and you have the right to judge me.”</p><p> </p><p>He felt the guilt creeping into his stomach as various corpses filled his eyes. Why the hell did he care about students? Why the fuck should he give a damn about their plans? What was important was for him to go back to his dimension! He needed to kill Itachi and restore honor back to his clan. He needed to get Naruto out of this dimension before those people realized that she wasn’t from this dimension.</p><p> </p><p>Why would a bunch of students be his concern?</p><p> </p><p><em>“You know what you’re doing is bad and you know that these kids shouldn’t be involved in this.”</em> A voice that sounded like Naruto echoed in his ear. He kept his expression blank as the guilt inside of his stomach began to grow.<em> “How are you any different from Itachi? He killed innocent people and you’re doing the same thing! You’re following the same path.”</em></p><p> </p><p>He hated that even though it had been three years since they interacted with each other, that one look at Naruto was enough for him to begin hesitating again.</p><p> </p><p>“I don’t have a heart and I don’t care about those students.”</p><p> </p><p>Kurogiri inspected him and offered him a frown. “You sound almost hesitant. After three years, are you growing hesitant about helping us achieve our goals despite the fact that All For One has poured time and effort in helping you with your own research.”</p><p> </p><p><em>He doesn’t give me much time to conduct my own research.</em> Sasuke swallowed down those bitter words and looked at Shigaraki. The man seemed almost ready to combust with the idea that he might be waning over what had to be done. This would be the perfect opportunity for the man to take advantage over his long paused and inform All For One about this.</p><p> </p><p>His research would be taken away from him and all that killing and delivery would have been for nothing.</p><p> </p><p>“Nothing is going to deter me from my goal.”</p><p> </p><p>There was nothing in this world that could make him hesitate again.</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“C’mon Bastard! Give me a smile! I know you can smile.”</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>He wasn’t going to let Naruto affect him again.</p><p>
  
</p><p>
  <em>“It will make me happy if you can become friends with her, Sasuke.”</em>
</p><p>
  
</p><p>His mother could understand why he had to break his promise to her, because if he continued being around Naruto then he was going to wish and dream for things that wasn’t his right. <em>But I’m the fool that can’t stop going to her workplace now that I know she is here.</em> He shook his head and took one large gulp of his drink.</p><p> </p><p>All of his hard work was going to be worth it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Do leave me a comment to tell me what you think about this chapter and do leave a kudo if you enjoyed this work.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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